Product Description
2005 marks the fiftieth anniversary of Nikos Kazantzakis' "The Last Temptation of Christ". Since Kazantzakis ranks as one of the twentieth century's most important European writers, and given that this particular work of his has garnered so much publicity, this collection of essays re-assesses the novel, though not forgetting the movie, in light of one half century's worth of criticism and reception history. Clergy and laity alike have denounced this novel. When it first appeared, the Greek Orthodox Church condemned it, the Vatican placed it on its Index of Forbidden Texts, and conservative-evangelicals around the world protested its allegedly blasphemous portrayal of a human, struggling Messiah who "succumbs" to the devil's final snare while on the Cross: the temptation to happiness. Assuredly, the sentiments surrounding this novel, at least in the first thirty years or so, were very strong. When Martin Scorsese decided in the early 1980s to adapt the novel for the silver screen, even stronger feelings were expressed.Even today his works are seldom studied in Greece, largely because the Greek government is unable or unwilling to anthologize his material for the national curriculum. After fifty years, however, the time seems right to re-examine the novel, the man, and the film, locating Kazantzakis and his work within an important debate about the relationship between religion and art (literary and cinematic). Until now a book-length assessment of Kazantzakis' novel, and the film it inspired, has not appeared. No such volume is planned to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the novel's publication. For those who work in Kazantzakis studies, a focused anthology like this one is missing from library collections. The volume contains original essays by Martin Scorsese, the film critic Peter Chattaway, and Kazantzakis' translator, Peter A. Bien. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

fact & fiction
This is a book about St. Francis of Assisi.The author admits right up front that this book is a reflection on the life of St. Francis which mixes facts about his life and some "creative" fill in material that is the thought of the author.It's like the apocraphal works of the gospels - the authors take the statements in the gospels and then "fill in the blanks" to kind of like complete the stories of Jesus' "hidden" years.
The book is interesting and captivating.It does inspire the author and reader to have an appreciation and greater respect for St. Francis if you didn't have that already.

The Best St. Francis
Reading Kazantzakis' St. Francis is a consistently joyful, frequently ecstatic experience.A fictionalized account of the life of St. Francis, this novel allows the reader to know the saint almost personally.Told through the eyes of his loyal companion, the story not only chronicals the historic events in the life of St. Francis, but also captures the tumultuous essence of a life lived in longing for ever more service to God.This is one of the best books about St. Francis in existence. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Byzantion Nea Hellas, published by Thomson Gale on January 1, 2003. The length of the article is 6800 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Algunos aspectos existencialistas (1) en la Odisea de Nikos Kazantzakis.(Ensayo crítico)
Author: Martín Centeno Rogers
Publication: Byzantion Nea Hellas (Magazine/Journal)
Date: January 1, 2003
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Issue: 22Page: 229(17)

Article Type: Ensayo crítico

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more